~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Morphic Field ~ ∞ ~
Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary
Morphic field is a field within and around a self-organizing system that organizes its characteristic structure and pattern of activity. According to the hypothesis of formative causation, morphic fields contain an inherent memory transmitted by previous similar systems by morphic resonance and tend to become increasingly habitual. Morphic fields include morphogenetic, behavioral, social, cultural, and mental fields. The greater the degree of similarity, the greater the influence of morphic resonance. In general, systems most closely resemble themselves in the past and are subject to self-resonance from their own past states.
~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within - Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Freedom Is A State Of Mind (Inspiration Vibration).
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
This direct connection increases our overall energy frequency levels, and thus we can become even more aware of the pure Living Awareness within Living Life itself. This kind of awareness, or pure presence — has immense practical value. Expanded awareness takes us into a deeper relation with the underlying pattern of life, it takes us beyond the limitations of linear mental thinking — into a place of greater wisdom. When we enter into a deep relation with our own awareness, we go to the heart of the universal pattern which connects all things — seen and unseen. We find ourselves part of a set of relationships, in which whatever happens is connected to everything else. This is how our perspective changes, and our inner understanding (Innerstanding) deepens.
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
Living Awareness is the creative ground of intention and intuition, and at the same time, it is the source of the sparkle, joy and vitality that we enjoy when we are in touch with our own being; it is our bridge to the creative ground, in which all things abide and from which they spring. Living Awareness is shared with every particle within All Life, and thus Living Awareness is the Heart of Living Life — this eternal, Infinite Awareness observes every part of the Creation by utilizing Living Consciousness as the means; consciousness arises when awareness observes the Creation or any part of its many emanations — so in this sense, Living Awareness is also aware of itself as the other (mirror). In order for the Infinite to know itself as something that is finite, it has to pretend to be separate from itself — this is the way in which the Living Awareness creates consciousness through which we perceive the world around us.
~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within - Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Love Yourself Enough To Live A Healthy Lifestyle.
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
By virtue of the aforementioned, it can be said that embodying the present moment by being a fully conscious witness is the same as Living Awareness — it is a pure state of being in this direct experiencing, you see? When Living Awareness embodies our existence — we feel truly alive, in harmony with ourselves and with the world around us; we know who we are, and what we should do in any given moment; we are balanced and effective in ourselves, and hence others appreciate our coherence. When we are open to Living Awareness, everything we experience is fresh and full with new possibilities. Living Awareness brings into balance the conflicting needs of the different parts of our life — feelings and emotions, mind and body, Soul and Spirit. This type of pure presence aligns all parts of ourselves and takes us to a place where we discover with absolute certainty exactly what is appropriate for any given situation — with greater awareness we can make better choices, picking options that genuinely enrich our life. It is quite interesting that although this should be our normal state of life, our normal state of being, we mostly settle for less. Intriguing, isn’t it?
~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within - Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Have A Beautiful Day (Inspiration Vibration).
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
The only reason why people feel the need to return to Living Awareness through these various methods is because they think that they have left from somewhere as Spirit. In all actuality, there is no distance between Living Awareness and itself, nor time where something can occur; Living Awareness never becomes anything else than Living Awareness, it never leaves anywhere — Living Awareness just is. If the individuated self could comprehend this on a conscious level — that realization alone would set it free. You see, knowing that you have never been anything else than pure Living Awareness — is true peace and happiness; the clear, deep inner knowing that I am whole, all experience is made out of myself, I need nothing but I am everything — is fulfillment in and of itself — see? This we can call an “Awakening,” which is something that takes place within each of us whenever we are ready to remember our eternal nature, whenever we are ready to take that first step in remembering who we are at the deepest level of our being, whenever we are ready to know our core essence as Spirit.
~ ∞ ~ Humanity – The Pinnacle of Evolution? 3/4 – The Essence of Life ~ ∞ ~
And with this, we arrive at another aspect of the same. We may be sentient – yes, but truly intelligent – no. To be truly intelligent is to be able to make the realization that we may not be truly intelligent; to be truly intelligent is to recognize and acknowledge the interconnectedness and interdependence of all life – human, animal, plant; and the responsibility shared by all not to exploit natural resources. For sure, we are intelligent on an individual basis, thus being highly advanced in cognitive terms, which has allowed us to achieve many technological wonders, but whether that sets us totally apart from other animal species (whom also display cognitive powers of a lesser but related kind) is a debatable question; and when it comes to being truly conscious*1 – it is highly debatable.
As we continue this discussion of evolution, it is worth pointing out the obvious: the problem with us humans is that we always seem to be thinking in terms of physical evolution – forgetting or just simply ignoring the spiritual aspect altogether. In truth, it is not only important, but necessary component in this process – one could even argue that it’s the sole purpose and reason for our existence. You see, it seems plausible that intelligent life in the universe is so incredibly rare that it only happened once. If this is indeed the case, then what does it say about us human beings? That we are special beyond imagination? Now, if we are to suppose for a moment, that we humans are, indeed, the pinnacle of evolution – would it not then mean that consciousness is the end goal for evolution? Furthermore, wouldn’t that mean, then, that the telos of mankind is to achieve Self-Awareness through inner exploration, awareness and insight?
And now, if we can see evolution as a spiritual path, we must then see that consciousness is the most spiritual thing there is, and therefore we must be willing to surrender to the spiritual process – the process of fulfilling the telos of human existence, if we are to evolve further, you see? When we consider that most of us believe in the idea of a Soul or Spirit – the part of us that makes us who we are, would it be so hard, then, to imagine that much like our physical bodies change and evolve over time – so do our Souls? Wouldn’t it make perfect sense, then, that Souls get stronger as they gain experience and grow wiser as they learn through experience; eventually remaining Self-Aware of their True Essence? But, alas, because we are incapable of consciously recognizing the spiritual aspect of the whole evolutionary process, we are quite desperately seeking materialistic solutions to escape our inevitable, impending death – as if it would somehow solve the dilemma of impermanence*1.
_______
*1 This area is explored in more detail in chapters 1.) The Existential Paradox, 2.) The Fear of Annihilation (Non-Existence), 3.) Change Is the Only Constant.
Let us go deeper, and explore this more. Universe in its entirety can be regarded as one gigantic process of becoming, of attaining new levels of existence and organization, which can also be called a genesis or an evolution. In other words, universe can be seen as a continually transforming living system, one gigantic process of passing down information that life needs to expand, develop and unfold. Because we human beings are an inherent part of the universe, part of nature, we too are in process of becoming – the human being as a species is constantly attaining not only new levels of existence and organization, but also new levels of consciousness and awareness.
We have evolved to our present human level collectively, but further progress requires a concentrated effort on the part of individuals. Next, there is the point at which self-consciousness or awareness emerges – most of us are still a little below this point, though some are a little above it. In a way, these two can be said to represent lower and higher evolution – what separates these two is the level of awareness. The higher evolution is distinguished from the lower by the fact that it takes place in and through awareness. It follows, therefore, that progress in the higher evolution is at the same time a progress in awareness – becoming aware of awareness itself, you see?
It is noteworthy to mention that not every individual is going to go through this process of further evolution – spiritual evolvement, if you will. You see, higher evolution involves individual’s use of their free will, and hence it would be better to call it Conscious Evolution, or Involution, which means transformation, i.e., a process that follows the completion of evolution in the human form – the process of fulfilling the telos of human existence. Should one choose to utilize their free will to rewrite their story, and consciously take part in their future growth and expansion, integration and transformation – is entirely up to them, and them alone. This, in turn, can lead to the emergence of a collective awakening, which holds the potential for a balanced world where humans are conscious participants in the evolution of their cultures, and even of the entirety of human society, you see?
By virtue of the aforementioned with regard to awakening, it is worth highlighting the following: awakening is something that takes place within each of us whenever we are ready to remember our eternal nature, whenever we are ready to take that first step in remembering who we are at the deepest level of our being, whenever we are ready to know our core essence as Spirit. Therefore, awakening is connected with free will. It is through our free will that we develop spiritually and refine our ethical faculties; and this is where it gets interesting. You see, as mentioned earlier, the experience of free will is closely connected and related to the experience of self-awareness, which means that we can only apply free will to that which we are aware of, to that which we have “control” over; only if we are aware of ourselves, and thus of our actions – is it truly possible to experience that which we call free will. If one chooses to utilize their free will, and consciously – with dedication and effort, strives towards higher evolution, then there is the point at which transcendental awareness begins to emerge, and with it, awareness of Reality emerges – this is the point of no return, on a path toward Self-Actualization – see?
Although we seem to be incapable of recognizing that there is, indeed, a spiritual aspect to our evolution as human beings, we have come far in our journey to understand ourselves and our relation to our environment. Our understanding of evolution has grown to such an extent that we are finally able to recognize that evolution is a product of cooperation and altruism among organisms living in close association. We are just beginning to learn that sustainable life is the property of an ecological system – a biotic community and its physical environment. Although there is much work to be done, this is an excellent starting point for further development. But here the question becomes: Is it too little, too late? One thing is certain, unless we mature and grow spiritually, we will remain as spiritual infants. There is a maturation process in our natural life as we grow from being infants – to being young men and women – to being adults; in the same way, we should mature spiritually, as well.
This brings us directly back to the human condition, which is the root cause of all our dysfunctional behavior, both as individuals and as a species. It doesn’t take a genius to see that we are like teenagers, running around causing trouble everywhere we go; we are restless and uneasy when not occupied, and constantly looking for distraction, as if we are incapable of just ‘being.’ Hence, it is very important to ask ourselves: Why is it that we don’t seem to be able to adjust ourselves to the physical environment without destroying it and ourselves in the process? Considering that we are meant to be the custodians of the Earth, the ones who take care for its plants and animals, and protects its natural beauty – we should be showing respect for our Home – the Earth; showing gratitude for all the abundance that the Earth gives us every day. But unfortunately, as things stand, quite the opposite is true.
You see, metaphors of the mechanistic worldview has provided the justification for the exploitation of nature that materialism, industrialization, and unchecked appetite and greed has demanded. As a result, we have designed organizations and leadership models based on this worldview and now we live with the results daily. And so it goes that we have come to look upon nature as something separate from ourselves, something we could master, control and manipulate to obtain specific benefits for our species. All this because we were taught that our species has been given dominion over all others and over the Earth itself. But let us step back and think about it for a moment; even if some people were to believe that we ought to have dominion over all living things, would it not require us to treat all living things with respect? There is a difference between caring and exploiting – see? It is unfortunate that we have misunderstood the concept and twisted it to fit our selfish desires, which of course comes with a price and consequences. We eventually have to face up to the consequences of our actions, “you reap what you sow,” as they say.
Extra Material:Video: Society, A Perpetual Cycle [Alan Watts]. Video description: "Alan Watts talks about how our society conditions children to live with a constant frustration and worry about the future, and never learn how to live in the present."
~ ∞ ~ Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Everything You Go Through Grows You (Inspiration Vibration).
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
And so you see, the legacy of history, it seems, is that our human tendency is to repeat our past and do things as we have learned to do them — often starting in our childhood, without questioning or challenging what we do; constantly projecting past into the future without transcending ourselves in the process. This means that collectively we become our past — repeatedly, and so it goes that we face the same issues and fundamental problems as did humans thousands of years ago. If we look at the state of humanity today, one may say that nothing has changed. Granted, we have developed a formidable intellect, science, and technology, but alas, that is pretty much where it begins and ends — it is premature at best, and the height of hubris at worst, to assume otherwise. You see, there are still wars and conflict, there is a divide between rich and poor, people are still greedy and cruel, and we still have great suffering in the world. From this, the question arises: Does it have to be this way?
~ ∞ ~ Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Bodhidharma: All Know The Way, But Few Actually Walk It.
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
We live in an Interconnected World, in which biological, psychological, social, and environmental phenomena are all interdependent. Therefore, it is essential to explore these interconnections if we are to better understand ourselves and our place in the greater scheme of things, our role in bringing about balance in the environment and in our lives, or upsetting the balance even further — instigating disharmony, deepening the problems we already have, you see? The larger lesson is to make a conscious effort in our daily lives to understand these interconnections — if we can discover and implement ways of honoring these connections in our daily lives, we would be well on our way toward a more sustainable world, with a healthier and more balanced way of life, wouldn’t we?
~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Human Condition ~ ∞ ~
Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary
The Human Condition is a name given to a collective condition, which is traditionally being described as the unalterable part of humanity, not dependent on factors such as gender, race, culture or class; it includes concerns such as the meaning of life, the search for gratification, the sense of curiosity, and last but certainly not the least, an awareness regarding the inescapability of death – you see, of all living things, only humans suffer an awareness of their own mortality, which is the source of a great deal of emotional distress and pain.
~ ∞ ~ Humanity – The Pinnacle of Evolution? 2/4 – The Essence of Life ~ ∞ ~
From this, the question arises: What is it that really sets humans apart from other animals? Is it our ability to reason? To feel emotions? To communicate by language? To care for others? Or is it our free will? And what does having free will even mean? Wouldn’t it mean that we have the choice to stop and think about the consequences of our choices and actions? We can begin answering these questions with the following: What sets humans apart from other animals is our ability to reason, plan, assign meaning, and cooperate; other than that, it is our mutual understanding and respect between peoples and societies that really sets humans apart from other animals.
This is where the term ‘spiritual’ comes into play. You see, ultimately, it is our spiritual nature that sets us apart and allows us to express ourselves creatively, with feelings and emotions; to do things such as art, music, sculpture, dance, creative writing etc. It is our spiritual nature that finds us asking the ultimate questions: one’s meaning in life, what happens when we die, is there something more than day-to-day existence? There is a point, a moment we arrive at where the inevitable strikes us with its adamant presence – this is one of those moments. You see, if we are spiritual in nature, then this life is just one phase of existence and not our final destination. By the same token, if this life is only the first phase, then there is a very good reason for living a virtuous life, is there not? So therefore, maybe the real question we should be asking is: Why is it such a struggle to rise above these bodies and their desires to return to one’s spiritual origins?
Well, as pointed out earlier, we are highly evolved, sophisticated social animals, which brings about its own set of challenges and consequences. You see, most people lack both present moment awareness and sentient awareness, which makes it difficult to practice free will. The weakness of will, combined with ignorance is what gets us in trouble. Now, let me ask you this: If you don’t have control over your thoughts, feelings and actions, then who does? Who’s in control, then? From this, the question becomes: Do you have free will, and furthermore, do we as humans have free will? Although it is widely believed that all humans have free will, it isn’t so straightforward as one might expect. Why is that? Let us explore this further and see if we can find out, shall we?
The question of free will is deeply profound and intriguing; it is one of the oldest and most enduring questions facing humanity, and hence it is of great importance – not only for its ethical implications, but also because our moral values spring directly from the experience of learning how to live and coexist with other people. Our understanding of free will in relation to ethics will influence the way we think about justice, the way we treat and meet other people, and the way we take care of other people in need of help and so on – see? It is through our free will that we develop spiritually and refine our ethical faculties; and this is where it gets interesting. You see, the experience of free will is closely connected and related to the experience of self-awareness. The truth is that we can only apply free will to that which we are aware of, to that which we have “control” over; only if we are aware of ourselves, and thus of our actions – is it truly possible to experience that which we call free will.
And so you see, the question of whether humans have free will is not so straightforward as one might expect. Why is that? Well, firstly, we have choices from which to choose, but now the question becomes: If someone or something presents you with a set of choices, does it qualify as free will when you make the choice from the predetermined selection? Secondly, having ownership over one’s life, health and well-being adds a level of responsibility and accountability that can be hard to get accustomed to. This is why most people prefer to live their lives in ‘autopilot’ mode, or just simply in a voluntary unconscious state. Thirdly, free will only apply to those who truly have it – not all people have the same will. In this sense, free will is a privilege – see? So this being the case, we should ask ourselves: If most people live their lives in ‘autopilot’ mode, based on the contents and programs that are stored within their subconscious minds, how many conscious choices have they really made throughout their lives? Have they utilized their free will, and if so, to what extent? To what extent then can it properly be said that we have free will?
Keeping all that in mind, it is an understatement to say that there’s a certain irony in that we are searching for the signs of intelligent life in the universe, even though we cannot even recognize other forms of intelligent life here on Earth, let alone recognize and acknowledge the unity of humanity – there’s a huge dichotomy here – don’t you think? The irony becomes even stronger and more apparent when we consider the fact that we cannot even coexist with other life here on Earth. You see, the irony is that we as human beings are evolved enough to realize that we have a deeper understanding of consciousness than other creatures we recognize, and yet we are not smart enough to realize that we are destroying the very conditions on Earth that make life possible for us.
However, upon deeper examination, it can be seen that maybe we do, indeed, realize that we are destroying our environment; but then it makes the situation even worse, does it not? In our hubris, we have lost our perspective about what is good and wholesome. Driven by the primal fear of death and survival, we are increasingly encroaching on other species and their habitats like savages; no matter how far we have evolved – this seems to be the defining theme that lives on. From this, the question arises: Is that what intelligent sentient species really do? At this point, some might ask: What is wrong with us humans? Why is human history an endless saga of warfare, conflict, oppression, exploitation, domination and misery?
Well, usually this inherent part of humanity is explained away by our physical animal heritage. When we really think about it, we can realize that for thousands of years we have used it as an excuse to do nothing, to make no progress at all; we have used it as a convenient scapegoat when necessary. Therefore, our divisive behavior which make us fight and compete for food, shelter, territory and a mate – is justified by our savage animal instincts. Unfortunately, in a similar way, many also turn a blind eye to the aforementioned oppression, exploitation and so on. This is where we go off the rails – big time. You see, all too often we just stand by and watch as these things happen – doing nothing, saying nothing. It is no wonder, then, that history repeats itself, would you agree?
It is our passiveness and ignorance that keeps us segregated, under the rule and influence of others, which in turn makes us frustrated. Our frustration turns to anger, and anger turns to fear that expresses itself as rage, which eventually turns against us. More to the point: every time we try to explain away our destructive, divisive behavior – what we are actually doing is that we are trying to escape the responsibility of our actions. To be truthfully honest, when we are capable of explaining our actions with excuses – it tells us that we are well aware of what we are doing; justifying our actions with excuses is always a conscious choice – or do you beg to differ? However, as we continue to take a deeper look at ourselves as humans, we can see that we are far off from being truly conscious, rendering our so called free will questionable.
But even more to the point is the fact that we as humans are not acting divisively only because of our animal instincts, habits and behavioral patterns, but also because we choose to do so. This leads us to conclude that humans as we know humans – are like this; the truth is – no matter how difficult it is to bear: underlying all of our marvellous accomplishments in every field imaginable, we humans have also been the most ferocious and malicious beings to have ever lived on Earth. Just like an animal going in circles and chasing its tail, so do humans – repeating their mistakes. For only through pain, seemingly, do humans grow. Through mistake, or suffering, or difficulty, they seem to realize the error of their ways. It is not to say they cannot learn in a pleasurable and comfortable atmosphere, for they can! But humans as we know humans, cannot believe the obvious, they cannot hear the truth, and they will not do what is good for them – this is why humans learn by their mistakes – see?
Extra Material:Video: Society, A Perpetual Cycle [Alan Watts]. Video description: "Alan Watts talks about how our society conditions children to live with a constant frustration and worry about the future, and never learn how to live in the present."
~ ∞ ~ Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Enjoy Life Now, This Is Not A Rehearsal (Inspiration Vibration).
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
Given the current situation we find ourselves in, witnessing the deteriorating conditions of the Earth, growing instability of the social, political, and economic world structures, one can easily conclude that it has never been a better time to experience a shift in perspective, to experience a shift of paradigms and strive ahead with new ideas and approaches. You see, we are an inseparable part of a Living Universe, and therefore we can no longer leave ourselves out of the equation. As such, we should grow in our understanding beyond what is currently known and strive to improve ourselves in every way possible; we should strive to be united as a species; focus our attention and energy for the betterment of humanity as a whole; use our intelligence and ingenuity to further improve the quality of human life, to grow and develop our skills and talents. And so you see, it is necessary for our evolvement that we go through a metaphysical paradigm shift, is it not?
~ ∞ ~ Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
I AM Grateful - Happiness, Peace, Joy (Inspiration Vibration).
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
Most parents project expectations onto their offspring and put pressure on their children. While all this may come with good intentions, it is precisely those good intentions that often lead us astray, which is another way of saying that “the road to hell is paved with good intentions,” as they say. In other words, good intentions, when acted upon, may have unintended consequences. You see, what we learn as children about who we are, or who we are supposed to be — greatly influences how we see ourselves as adults. And so it goes that as we go through life, we may feel the pressure of fulfilling those expectations. Taking into consideration that most of these projections are parents’ own unfulfilled expectations for life, it would be beneficial to learn to identify where the influences are coming from and ask oneself: why it was in these people’s interest to place these expectations on me, and then let them go. It is saddening that some people want their children to be carbon copies of themselves — or do you beg to differ?
~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Satori ~ ∞ ~
Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary
In Zen Buddhism, Satori is ‘a glimpse of truth’ or a sudden moment of awakening – seeing into one’s true nature; Zen is a product of Satori – achieved by deepening one’s experience even further and bringing it into maturation by continuous practice. Zen in its basic essence is the art of seeing into the nature of one’s own being, and therefore it points the way from bondage to freedom; being free means of giving free play to all the creative and benevolent impulses inherently lying in our hearts – Zen liberates all these energies naturally stored within each of us. See also closely related terms Samadhi, and Nirvana.
~ ∞ ~ Success Life Quotes - Infinite Quantum Zen ~ ∞ ~
Just When The Caterpillar Thought The World Was Over It Became A Butterfly.
Amazon Associate #ad links to book recommendations:
Quote of the Day:
Now, let us end this chapter with the following words: although life may sometimes seem aimless or random, even absurd, pointless and without meaning — there is purpose in everything; we just need to be aware enough to see it. There is purpose even in the process of realizing the absurdity of life. You see, it is the beginning, not an end, for it fundamentally changes one’s way of living and being, doing and acting, which in turn changes one’s feeling and the ways of thinking and seeing. It is in these moments where we have an opportunity to gain perspective. These are the moments that allow us to realize that happiness stems from being aware; from being grateful for this moment; from being grateful for what we have. Life is the ultimate blessing — see? So with each morning, why not remind yourself how grateful you are for your health and well-being? For you see, health is not given — it has to be gained and maintained by one’s own efforts; of which being grateful is a big part of the equation. What a marvelous reminder, don’t you think?
~ ∞ ~ Humanity – The Pinnacle of Evolution? 1/4 – The Essence of Life ~ ∞ ~
In the following few chapters, we will take a deep dive into humans as we know humans; each of these chapters build upon each other, gradually adding new layers of depth and complexity to the whole, which in turn gives room for more context to emerge to support the wholeness – and so does the bigger picture emerge, a story of humans as we know humans; their challenges, weaknesses and shortcomings, but also their strengths and opportunities. In this regard, it can be said to be an unapologetic exploration of the human species, which is struggling with the human condition and all the difficulties and challenges it brings. As such, it goes without saying that if we are to understand why we humans are the way we are, it is essential to investigate the mindset we have developed over time. Furthermore, if one is to transcend self-imposed limitations, it is paramount to understand from where these limitations originate and what weighs us down. There’s one thing left to say before we dive in – brace yourself because it’s going to be a wild ride from here on out. As they say, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. So, here we go.
Humanity perceives itself to be the most advanced species on Earth, and quite possibly in the whole universe – the pinnacle of evolution, superior to any other life form. Thus, we humans like to believe that we are ‘uniquely unique,’ the most sophisticated creation in all existence – we are, after all, as far as we know, the only intelligent, sentient bipedal species known to exist in this universe; and yet, we are at war with other fellow human beings – quite a dichotomy, don’t you think? Taking that into account, some would say that humans as we know humans today, are the antithesis of what is meant by “intelligent, sentient being” in its deepest sense – for you see, the activities of such beings certainly would not include causing pain to others with no other object than causing pain.
According to this “superiorist” view, humans have somehow transcended evolution and raised themselves above the survival of the fittest – becoming quite simply, the fittest; and yet, in all actuality, every species alive today is at the pinnacle of the evolutionary process – those that are not, just simply no longer exist. Granted, maybe we are most evolved to live in suburban areas, but that doesn’t by any means make us the “be-all-end-all” pinnacle of evolution. You see, all species evolve to sustain their determined placement in nature, which means that we humans are not more evolved for ocean life than the great whites, and no more evolved for jungle life than tigers. In other words, if you drop us into the middle of the ocean, we quickly see that we’re not even close to the pinnacle of evolution for that area – even shrimp are more evolved than we in that situation.
By virtue of the aforementioned with regard to humans as the pinnacle of evolution, it is worth highlighting something that is both paramount and funny at the same time. You see, we humans are ingenious in ways we make something to match our needs or fit our worldview. In this regard, it’s funny how this works: first we announced that everything on Earth could be separated into two groups – the animate and inanimate; then not only did we place ourselves in the first group, we further insisted on measuring all other life forms on Earth against ourselves. In this respect, we treat ourselves as the “masters of the universe,” making the rules as we go – bending them as we see fit. Convenient, isn’t it?
And now for the paramount part of it: when we compare ourselves to other species in terms of evolution, it is simply preposterous to assume that totally and utterly different species could somehow be compared in the same fashion. The comparison is simply impossible because eventually it all boils down to perspective – life is a spectrum, not something where we can fit different species into strict categories. And so you see, with different measurement criteria – ants, bats, octopi, dolphins, or even bacteria could very well be seen as the “be-all-end-all” pinnacle of evolution. To put things in perspective, perhaps we would do well to remember that bacteria predate us by billions of years, and are highly likely to outlive our species by billions more.
As for curiosity, humans consists of more microbial cells than human cells, and their genes form an integrated part of whom we are, which is another way of saying that we are more bacteria than we are anything else. This once again brings about the question: Who, and what are we, really? We are human beings, yes, but what does that really mean? Normally, one might take this to mean that at least on a biological level, we are defined by our own genome. But living in and on the human body is an ecosystem of microorganisms that outnumber our own cells by at least a factor of ten.
As we continue our discussion, it is good to remember that biology defines human beings as animals – the reason for mentioning it should become apparent later. As indicated earlier, we humans like to believe that we are ‘uniquely unique,’ and this is why we think very highly of ourselves. As the only mammal endowed with the gifts of speech and reason, we should be grateful for these gifts and use them wisely. In the following few paragraphs, these aspects are discussed with respect to how they may impact one’s awareness of themselves. Let us start with language, speech and communication since there are a couple of things worth mentioning in this regard.
Before we move further along, it is paramount to highlight the following: the human ability to speak, reason, and form complex social relations make us unique among species, but in no shape or form does it make us the “be-all-end-all” pinnacle of evolution. Humans have their unique qualities, yes, but so do flowers, animals, trees, insects and so on. Our uniqueness intertwines with everything else’s uniqueness, which is another way of saying that our uniqueness is a relative concept which depends entirely on the observer’s frame of reference.
On that note, complex communication is one of our defining features – yet all too often we dismiss the fact that every species communicates – even single-celled organisms have the ability to communicate; what’s noteworthy is that this communication doesn’t have to be in the form of the spoken word – it could be done through actions, gesticulations, chemicals, sounds, or even dances, you see? This goes on to say that spoken language is our preferred way of communication. In this sense, there is nothing special about spoken language. You see, speech is the production of sounds that make up words and sentences; communication is the transfer of information (thoughts, ideas, and feelings); language is the method of communication. It’s not to say that spoken language is not a wonderful tool, for it is, it’s just that this form of communication is more often than not, inefficient – precisely because of its complexity – see?
Now, some might want to argue that language has given us a major advantage over other species. Yet, we still don’t know when and how we began using language. Surely, language has given us a way to wonder, ponder and speculate, but the question is: Has it benefited us in any way, and if so, how has it benefited us? Granted, the creation of language has given us the ability to communicate and express ourselves, but at the same time it has enabled us to conceal not only our true thoughts, opinions and intentions, but also our deepest feelings and emotions, as well. Language is our prime means of communication, and yet the most outstanding characteristic of this communication is that it always falls short of what it aims for. And so you see, it is against this backdrop that we can see the paradox of language: it is futile and yet vital.
Furthermore, in spoken language, much of the meaning is determined by the context; similarly, spoken language tends to convey subjective information, which is problematic in more ways than one. You see, in actuality, language can only convey an idea of what something appears to be, for you see, language cannot ever describe it fully; this, of course, makes spoken language inefficient. Even though language is a process of free creation – its laws and principles are fixed, and also the interpretation of words are infinitely varied, which only further adds to the inefficiency. More broadly, because language cannot ever describe the true essence of our existence and our experience of it, we are forced to use sounds, signs and symbols in an effort to re-connect with the Life-force that runs through everything. So in this sense, there’s a certain irony in that we have to use words to explain why language is a limited form of communication. In conclusion, the specialness of language is as much relative as our uniqueness.
This brings us to an important point: we should not make the mistake of thinking that we are above other creatures, but sadly we do; and for this very reason, we are more dangerous than any other species. As such, we place much more importance on ourselves than we do anything else; this is where our pride gets in the way – that is, we consider ourselves to be the masters of the Earth, and to have the ability to adapt our environment to our desires instead of having to adapt to it; and because of this, we abuse and exploit it. In truth – as mentioned so many times before, we are not separate from the Earth – we are interconnected with it and everything on it.
Although some humans consider themselves as spiritual beings – physically, we are still animals, with all the same attributes as any other animal. Unless we accept this truth about ourselves, we will lack self-knowledge of the most basic sort, as we come to learn later. We may be sophisticated social animals, but animals nonetheless. As such, we have animalistic drives that press for biological survival and sensory pleasure within persons. These include bodily drives such as hunger, thirst, and sleep, but also primal urges such as fear and sex; it is our main primal instinct to spread our seed and reproduce. If you look at any other animal, their whole life purpose is pretty much just to reproduce and multiply. This applies to humans as well, you see, we cannot deny this natural instinct which explains why we think about it so much.
Extra Material:Video: Society, A Perpetual Cycle [Alan Watts]. Video description: "Alan Watts talks about how our society conditions children to live with a constant frustration and worry about the future, and never learn how to live in the present."